{"product_id":"9781405953344","title":"The Scandal of the Century","description":"Author: Hilton, Lisa\u003cbr\u003eISBN: 9781405953344\u003cbr\u003ePublisher: Penguin UK\u003cbr\u003eYear first published: 26 Aug 2025\u003cbr\u003ePages: 352\u003cbr\u003eFormat: Paperback \/ softback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe definitive biography of Aphra Behn, written by Lisa Hilton, bestselling author, historian, presenter and historical consultant\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThere are few labels \u003ci\u003enot\u003c\/i\u003e attached to Aphra Behn - playwright, poet, a spy, a starlet woman condemned for loose morals. And yet, for all her notoriety Aphra Behn is an enigma.\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e Born in around 1640, her early life isn't well recorded and facts about her are continually disputed. Her birth name \u003ci\u003emay\u003c\/i\u003e have been Eaffrey Johnson and she \u003ci\u003ecould\u003c\/i\u003e have been the daughter of a Canterbury barber, although neither fact is certain. And, just after the Restoration she probably briefly lived in the English colony of Surinam in South America, where she was perhaps embroiled in political espionage. Whatever the truth, Behn was in London by 1664 and six years later was writing for the stage.\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e For a decade, Behn's work dominated the London stage. Then, suddenly in 1682, she was charged with libel. Her plays could not be produced and by the time of the trial of the century Behn was broke. She decided that writing would be her way out and began to write a novel based on the most notorious adultress of a notoriously adulterous age - Lady Henrietta Berkeley.","brand":"Ships in 10 to 15 days","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47792498507934,"sku":"UBD-9781405953344","price":26.78,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0400\/9043\/5742\/files\/9781405953344.jpg?v=1780915440","url":"https:\/\/classicbargains.com.au\/products\/9781405953344","provider":"Classic Bargains Australia","version":"1.0","type":"link"}